“There are no big stories left, just paths through the clutter and the inevitable soft landing.”

“There was no soft place to land''No,' said Janie. 'Sometimes there just isn't'.”

“It would in retrospect appear to be a stop on a narrative path that was inevitable, but this is only because most events, most paths, feel inevitable in retrospect.”

“There was no room in London to stretch the sinews and muscles and skin, not enough clean air to refresh her lungs with gulping breaths. There was no big sky on which to rest her eyes, just a crushing grey smudge. It was impossible to find a clear path for more than a minute before it became blocked by children's buggies and bikes on the pavement and dogs on leads; by workmen endlessly digging up roads; by 4X4s squeezing through the narrow paths left by the workmen.”

“To stand here and try to fix her life is just a big waste of time. People don't want their lives fixed. Nobody wants their problems solved. Their dramas. Their distractions. Their stories resolved. Their messed cleaned up. Because what would they have left? Just the big scary unknown.”

“Creativity is a gift. It doesn't come through if the air is cluttered.”